'Astonishingly disappointing': Shashi Tharoor, Mamata Banerjee react to Union Budget 2022-23

The Congress leader said that this is a Budget that seems to be pushing 'achhe din' even farther away.

New Delhi: Congress leader Shashi Tharoor and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday (February 1) hit out at the Centre and expressed their disappointment over the Union Budget 2022. 

While Tharoor said that this budget seems to be pushing the mirage of 'achhe din' even farther away, Mamata said that it has 'zero for common people'.

Speaking minutes after Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented her fourth straight Union Budget in the Parliament, the Thiruvananthapuram MP said, "We are facing terrible inflation and there's no tax relief for the middle class. This is a Budget that seems to be pushing the mirage of 'achhe din' even farther away." 

"Now it's India at 100, we'll have to wait for 25 more years for 'acche din' to arrive," he added. 

Tharoor expressed that the Union Budget is extremely disappointing and is a 'damp squib'.

"There seems to be absolutely nothing in this Budget. It's an astonishingly disappointing Budget. When you listen to the speech, no mention of MGNREGA, of Defence, of any other urgent priorities facing the public," he stated.

We are facing terrible inflation and there's no tax relief for the middle class. This is a Budget that seems to be pushing the mirage of 'achhe din' even farther away. Now it's India at 100, we'll have to wait for 25 more yrs for 'acche din' to arrive: Congress MP Shashi Tharoor pic.twitter.com/8tRuKNw8gu — ANI (@ANI) February 1, 2022

"Very clear that as far as digital currency is concerned, the government was heading in that direction. To the best of my knowledge, a reasonable proposition, I don't think we'll be criticising that. But we're more concerned about lack of substance for common citizens in Budget," Tharoor said after the Finance Minister proposed that any income from transfer of any virtual digital asset shall be taxed at the rate of 30%. 

The West Bengal CM said that the government is lost in big words and termed it as a pegasus spin budget.

"Budget has zero for common people, who are getting crushed by unemployment & inflation. Govt is lost in big words signifying nothing. A pegasus spin budget." she tweeted.

BUDGET HAS ZERO FOR COMMON PEOPLE, WHO ARE GETTING CRUSHED BY UNEMPLOYMENT & INFLATION. GOVT IS LOST IN BIG WORDS SIGNIFYING NOTHING - A PEGASUS SPIN BUDGET — Mamata Banerjee (@MamataOfficial) February 1, 2022

It is noteworthy that contrary to widespread expectations from individual taxpayers, Sitharaman did not announce any change in the Income Tax Slab. The Finance Minister, however, gave respite to people filing their revised Income Tax Return (ITR) and said that the revised tax filing window will remain open for two years from the year of assessment in case of less filing of tax.